Child&#39;s vehicle



Jan. 4, 1927'. y 1,613,356

J. W. NORRISH CHILD s VEHICLE Filed June 7, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Y FZ 4. 44 43 fg INVENTOR Jan.

J. W. NORRISH L* CHLDS VEHICLE Filed June '7. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 6a 68 64 v 50 6E 68 64 eo 63 C? 260 l q aso 65 i' 'z 56 70 l 63 65 l 57 58 67 J 66 67 I INVENTOR (John Norrish, W

Patented dan. 4, 1927.

pairs VSTATES Larissa JOI-IN W. NORRISH, OF WOODLAWN, OHIO.

CHILDS VEHCLE.

Application filed June 7,

rlhis invention relates to power and transmission mechanism for propelling childrens vehicles and the like, and has ior an object the provision or a simple and etiicient hand or i'oot actuated drive means.

Another object is to provide a device of this kind in which is embodied a novel drive mechanism which is adapted to use by children oi' various sizes.

Another object is to provide a toot propelled vehicle wherein the pedal stroke may be varied according to the length oi the legs ot the child operating,- it without in'ipairingthe eliiciency thereof.

Another object is to provide mechanism ot the class referred to which is adaptable to provide forward and reverse movement of the vehicle and also to provide a plurality of speeds.

These and other objects are attained by the means described herein and disclosed. in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a tragmental cross sectional elevation ot a vehicle having` embodied therein a simplified torni ot the device ot my invention, showingl the drive mechanism .in gear 'lor forward movement of the vehicle.

Fig. 2 is a plan view ofthe sinfiplilied formen the drive mechanisn'i off my invention.

3 is an enlarged view of ythe device showing' the drive mechanism in reverse gear. i

Fig. 4E is a view taken on lme l-ll; ot Flg'. 3. @i h Fig'.` 5 is a view taken on line 5-5 of Fie'. L1.

Fia'. 6 is a plan view oit' a modified Yform ot the device of my invention, showing" the parts in position for high speed.

Fig. 7 is a view taken on line 7 7 oi Fig. G and showing' the gear shit't and brake levers in their relative positions.

Fig. S is a plan view showingthe relation ot parts of the device shown in Fig. (i in low or reverse gear.

Fig. 9 is a view on line 9-9 ot Fig. 8 showing the parts in ,low gear position.

10 is a view taken on line 10-10 Fig. 8 showing the parts in reverse gear.

Fig'. 11 is a view showing' the relation ot levers looking' toward the lett on Fig. 10.

A vehicle bed is suitably supported at its rear end upon a pair ot drive wheels such as l@ secured to drive axle 17 extending 1926. Serial No. 114,150.

through suitable bearings 18 in an open frame 19. A gear 2O is iiXed to axle 17 and is retained against lateral movement relative to the frame 19 by spacers 2l which sur-l round shaft 17. end 22 lined to frame 19 and its opposite end 23 fixed to bed 1.5 adjacent bracket 24, which carries a pair or'l pivotally mounted pedal arms 25. A yoke member 26 .is pivotally mounted at its opposite sides upon the frame 19 forwardly ot gear 20 by means of sui-table studs 27 which extend through the side members et the frame. The yoke 26 is adapted to be moved about its pivotal mountingon studs 27 and to carry forward drive gear 28 or reverse drive gear 29 into and out ot engagement with gear 29. The drive gears 28 and 29 are permanently in mesh with one another and are fixed to suitable shafts 8O and 31, respectively, which are journaled in the yoke 26. The shaft 31 carries a pair of discs lined thereto and to gear 29, the disc 32 having opposed dat faces 33 recessed as at 34 -for receiving V-shaped spring members 35' which are loosely positioned therein by pins 96. As shown in Figs. 4; and 5, disc 32 is housed in a cup structure 37 movable about its hub 38 on shaft 31 by an integral arm 3i Pedal rods 40 are pivot-ally connected at one end to arms 39 and pedals l1 connect theopposite end of each pedal rod to pedal arms 25. Retractile springs d2 connected to frame 19 and pedal rods 40' normally retain said rods and the arms 39 in a rearward po. sition as sho-wn in Fig. 1.

lnterior'ly of each cup 37 is a pair ot cylindrical rollers 43, one of which is disposed between each o1E the Hat 'faces 33 on disc 32 and the relatively movable inner circular wall 111 of the cup 37.

From the foregoing` description it will be apparent-that when either ot the pedals l1 are pushed Jforwardly from the position shownv in full lines to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, the cups 37 will be rotatably actuated whereupon the rollers 413 will effect a binding et the cup and disc 32 so that the gear 29 will be correspondingly actuated and will in turn move gear 28. Then the gear 2S is in mesh with gear 20 the vehicle will be driven forwardly through shaft 17. T he pedal rods a0 and cup 37 connected thereto through arms 39 are movable independently oi each other so that alternate Torque rod v210 has its one lili forward movement of the pedal 4l may be developed into continuous rotatory move ment of gears 29 and 28. The return movement of pedal rods and arms 39 under the action of springs 42 moves rollers 43 out of the binding relation with their associated parts so that no retrograde motion is transmitted to shaft. 31 and gear 29.

This drive meciianism is especially advantageous as it is effective for driving the vehicle with either long or short strokes of the pedal rods, and in this way both large and small children may successfully propel the vehicle without requiring alteration or adjustment of parts.

A. gear shift lever 45 is pivoted at 46 to the bed 15 and a link 47 connecting said lever and theyoke 26 serves to move the yoke about its pivotal mounting for effecting engagement of either drive gear 28 or reverse drive gear 29 with the gear 2o for securing forward or reverse motion of the vehicle, or said gears may be retained out of engagement with the gear 2O for attaining a neutral position of the drive mechanism. A rack 48 having notches 49, 5U, and 51 for receiving a spring actuated pawl 52 on the gear shift lever retains the mechanism in the desired position.

Yhe modified form of the device comprises the drive mechanism just described and in addition thereto a variable speed gear transmission and a brake mechanism. As shown in Figs. and 8 a small gear and a brake drum 54 are connected to shaft 1T on opposite sides of gear 20. In this embodiment the yoke 2G is mounted for lateral movement, a suitable spring 55 serving to normally retain it in such position as to permit meshing of gears 28 and 29 with gear 20. A suitable sleeve 56 extends from the side of frame 19 and carries a rotatable shaft 5T having a link 58 secured to the end thereof in alignment with a brake drum 54. A brake band 59 is passed about brake drum 54 and is adapted to be tightened about the brake drum by movement of the link 58 having the opposite ends of the brake band 59 secured thereto. A brake arm GO is secured to the opposite end of the rotatable shaft 5i and is suitably perforated adjacent its free end 51 for slidably receiving a brake rod 62 provided with a stop 63 which engages end 61 and effects movement of the brake arm and link for applying the brake band 59 to the drum 54. In this embodiment the brake rod G2 also extends through a suitable perforation adjacent the end G4 of an arm 65 pivotally mounted upon a stud 279 intermediate the frame and the yoke 26. The voke is providel with a hub 259 having a cam face G6. The arm 65 has a cam face 67 which co-operates with cam face (Sti, and rotatable movement of le arm F35 causes the inclined cam faces to ride one upon the other for effecting lateral moven'ient of the yoke 26 against the resistance of spring 55, whereby to position gears 28 and 29 for engagement with the.

small or high speed gear 53 on shaft 17. A collar 68 secured to rod 62 edeets movement of the arm for shifting the gears. A. brake lever 45() is substantially similar to gear shift lever 45 and has attached thereto the rod G2 carrying stops or collars 63 and G8. When the lever 450 is pulled rear wardly of the vehicle, rod 62 is moved forwardly, whereupon stop 63 engages brake arm for applying the brake. lVhen the lever 450 is pushed forwardly, the brake is released and further movement of the rod causes collar G8 to engage the end of arm 65 for shifting the yoke laterally and positioning gear 28 so that it may be moved `into engagement with the high speed gear rl`he gear shift lever 45 operates as in the simplified form in low gear. l/Vhen the yoke 28 isV shifted to the position shown in Fig. 6, only the forward gear 28 may be engaged with high speed gear 53, the limit of movement of the yoke precluding meshing of the reverse gear and high speed gral'.

The operation of the device is as follows: A child seated in a vehicle pushes forward the pedals 41 with alternate movements of his feet and this motion is converted into continuous rotary movement of shift 81 and gear 29 as previously explained. When gear shift lever 45 assumes its center or intermediate position, no power is transmitted to shaft 17. This position is useful in permitting the vehicle to coast. lVhen it is desired to propel a vehicle forwardly at low speed, the brake lever 450 is moved to an intermediate position and retained in a suitable notch on rack 48 so that neither collar 63 nor collar G8 engages either of the arms 60 or 65, so that the yoke 26 assumes the position shown in Fig. 8. Gear shift lever 45 is then moved forwardly as shown in Fig. 1, for engaging gears 28 and 20. If reverse movement of the vehicle is desired, the lever 45 is moved rearwardly to the position shown in Fig. 10. If high speed forward movement is desired, the gear vshift lever 45 is first placed in a neutral position after which the lever 459 is moved forwardly for shifting the yoke 26 and the gear shift lever 45 is then pushed forward to engage gear 28 and high speed gear 53.

It should be noted that the operation of the driving structure is such that a child may propel the vehicle for a time and then cease pedaling without having to remove his feet from the pedals, while the vehicle continues to move under its own momentum whether the gearing be in mesh or out of mesh. n

While I have shownkand described herein llo an embodiment of my invention as applied to foot propelled vehicles, I do not desire to limit myself to the exact structure shovvn,A

since it may be modified for hand propulsion by the mere addition of a pair of lhand levers pivotally mounted in the proximity of the vehicle bed and suitably connected with the arms 39 of the actuating means. A single hand lever may also be employed, if desired.

The structure, while comparatively small and inexpensive, makes possible a vehicle which is not only useful as a toy but is also instructive.

What I claim is:

l. In a device of the class described the combination of a` frame, an axle extending through the frame, a gear on the axle, a yoke pivotally mounted in the frame, a pair of intermeshing gears rotatably carried by the yoke, means for driving one of the gears on the yoke and means for moving the yoke about its pivotal mounting for engaging the gear on the axle and a selected one of the gears on the yoke.

2. In a device of the class described the combination of a frame, a gear supported by said frame, a yoke pivotally mounted in the frame, a pair of inter-meshing gears carried by the yoke, a clutch mechanism associated with one of the gears on the yoke for converting reciprocating movement of the clutch into one Way rotation of said gear and means for selectively engaging the gears on the yoke with the gear on the frame.

3. In a device of the class described the combination of a pivotally mounted yoke, intermeshing gears rotatably mounted in parallelism with and on opposite sides of the pivotal inounting of the yoke, a third gear mounted in fixed relation to the pivotal mounting of the yoke, means for moving the yoke about its pivotal mounting for selectively engaging the gears on the yoke with the third gear, means associated With one gear on the yoke and adapted to be reciprocated in opposite directions about the center of rotation of said gear, for moving the gear With it in one direction and for re- Uli turn movement independently of the gear, and spring means for effecting said return. movement.

e. In a device of the class described the combination of a pivotally mounted yoke, a pair of meshing gears carried thereby, a pair of parallel gears having a common axis in fixed parallelism With the pivotal mounting of the yoke, means for moving the yoke about its pivotal mounting for selectively engaging the gears on the yoke with one of the parallel gears, means for effecting lateral movement of the yoke whereby a gear on the yoke may be moved into engagement with the second parallel gear, and reciprocating means for rotating gears on the yoke.

5. In a drive and transmission mechanism the combination of a frame, an axle carried by the frame, parallel gears fixed to said axle, a yoke adapted for pivotal and lateral movement relatively to the parallel gears, a pair of intermeshing gears carried by the yoke and selectively engageable With one of the parallel gears upon pivotal move ment of the yoke and means for effecting lateral shift-ing of the yoke for permitting engagement of the second parallel gear and a gear on the yoke.

6. In a device of the class described the combination of a shaft, a disc on sai-d shaft having opposed peripheral flattened portions, a cup surrounding said disc and rotatable on the shaft, an arm on the cup, a roller disposed between the flattened portions of the disc and the interior of the cup for effecting frictional binding of the cup and disc When the cup is rotated in one direction and permitting free rotation of the cup relatively to the disc in the opposite ydirection and a yieldably mounted pedal rod connected to the arm for normally urging the cup in said last mentioned direction.

7. In a device of the class described the combination of a drive axle having a pair of gears and a brake drum secured thereto. a yoke pivotally mounted adjacent said axle and adapted to be shifted laterally on its pivotal mounting, meshing gears on the yoke adapted to'be selectively engaged `with one of the gears on the axle as the yoke is moved about its pivotal mounting, a lever for effecting pivotal movement of the yoke, a brake band on the drum,a brake arm for tightening the brake band on said drum, a

second arm, cams carried by said second arm and the yoke for effecting lateral move ment of the yoke for permitting engagement of a gear on the yoke with the second gear on the axle and a second lever for effecting movement of the brake arm and second arm.

8. In a device of the class described the combination of a pivotally mounted yoke,

meshing gears mounted on said yoke, a

pedal rod, means for converting reciprocal movement of the Apedal rod into rotatory movement of a gear on the yoke, a third gear adapted to be selectively engaged by the gearsvon the yoke and means for moving the yoke about its pivotal mounting.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 5th day of June,

JOHN IV. NOBRISH. 

